"Shanghai Gold Apple Bilingual School - steer clear of this 'school'. It's more like a business than an educational institution. Although pay was always on time (very low though), organization was HORRENDOUS. Nobody took the time to help the foreign teachers; teaching 30 students (with some students excelling in English, and others who didn't even know how to say how are you...) was an impossibility - especially since the kids viewed our class as playtime (apparently though so did the official teachers), and nobody listened to our constructive complaints - they were always just pushed to the side...
The school is located in the middle of nowhere (although construction for more shopping areas began right when we were leaving), and it takes about 55 minutes to get into Puxi and 40 minutes to get into downtown Pudong.
You do get relatively good accomodation. Two rooms (bedroom + living room), and a bathroom - traditional showers. No real kitchen though.
Anyway - just stay away from this school if you want to have a reasonably good time in China. Its major issue is the ridiculous lack of organization. When homeroom teachers tell you that the exams we give the students don't really mean anything - well, there you go. Don't waste your time."
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Inspector McHammered of the Lard in Pamplona, Spain
1 comment:
I am guessing from your post you have never taught in another Chinese school. Education is big business in China and I hate to say it but education comes second to making money but it's not just Gold Apple school it's all private schools in China.
Students in China are not put in ability based classes for each subject but instead are put in 1 class based on overall ability. Which again I dislike, but means that students English level will vary greatly...again not just an issue at the Gold Apple School.
Notice a pattern yet...And yes kids and Chinese teachers all over China see the foreign teacher classes as 'playtime'. It's the one lesson a week where they get to have fun and if their foreign teacher has any imagination he/she will get the students to use English is a fun way and become interested in learning and speaking English.
And as for the lack of organisation, have you ever been to a Chinese train station on a golden week or heard the expression 'That's China'. Well it's the most disorganised country I know and no one ever seems to have a clue what is going on. China to me is organised chaos.
The school's location...a school is located where the students are...in cities, and towns and waaaay out of cities. Are all the schools in your country down town??????????
I feel all of your comments are not constructive about the school but instead are how you dislike the Chinese way of doing things. Which is fine but is not needed on a TEFL blacklist website.
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